VZCZCXRO8378
PP RUEHAST RUEHCI RUEHDBU RUEHLH RUEHNEH RUEHPW
DE RUEHBI #0443/01 3291152
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 251152Z NOV 09
FM AMCONSUL MUMBAI
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 7570
INFO RUCNCLS/ALL SOUTH AND CENTRAL ASIA COLLECTIVE
RUEHNE/AMEMBASSY NEW DELHI PRIORITY 8784
RUEHCI/AMCONSUL KOLKATA PRIORITY 1945
RUEHCG/AMCONSUL CHENNAI PRIORITY 2157
RUEHBI/AMCONSUL MUMBAI PRIORITY 2802
RUEHTV/AMEMBASSY TEL AVIV PRIORITY 0029
RUEHJM/AMCONSUL JERUSALEM PRIORITY 0016
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC
RHEHAAA/NSC WASHINGTON DC

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 MUMBAI 000443 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PHUM PGOV ASEC PTER KIRF IN
SUBJECT: MUMBAI'S JEWISH COMMUNITY - SECURITY A NEW CONCERN A YEAR 
AFTER THE ATTACKS 
 
MUMBAI 00000443  001.2 OF 003 
 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary:  Since the 26/11 terrorist attacks, security 
awareness has risen within the dwindling Indian Jewish 
community.  The attacks drew unwelcome attention to the 
community, and while no specific security threats have emerged, 
some Jewish leaders have requested increased police security 
measures at the local level.  Within the community, there is a 
clear division between the Indian Jewish community and 
representatives of the Chabad organization, who were the victims 
of the 26/11 attack.  Though real concerns over security remain, 
Chabad is still active in Mumbai and receives around 100 Jewish 
visitors each week.  Overall, the Indian Jewish community tries 
to keep a low profile, and hopes that its peaceful relationships 
with Muslim and Hindu neighbors will limit its exposure to 
attacks from extremists.  End summary. 
 
 
 
The Jewish Community in Mumbai 
 
------------------------------- 
 
 
 
¶2.  (U) Jewish communities have lived in India for almost 2,000 
years.  The Bene Israel and Baghdadi Jew communities are found 
primarily in Mumbai and Maharashtra, while the Cochin Jews have 
traditionally lived in the southern state of Kerala.  Indian 
Jews have traditionally been a fully-integrated minority 
community; the Bene Israel community, which was officially 
recognized by the Israeli Rabbinate in 1964, is virtually 
indistinguishable from other residents.  Since India's 
independence, however, most of the Jewish community has 
emigrated to Israel or other foreign countries.  Of the 
estimated 45,000 Indian Jews at the time of independence, 
approximately 5,000 remain, with 60 percent of those in the 
Mumbai area of Maharashtra, and most speak Marathi as their 
native tongue.  Accordingly, this small community is largely 
elderly, close-knit, and struggling to maintain its religious 
traditions and synagogues. 
 
 
 
Security and 26/11 
 
------------------ 
 
 
 
¶3.  (SBU) In several meetings with Jewish community members, 
most agreed that the terrorist attacks in Mumbai in November 
2008 (known in India as "26/11") brought the community closer, 
especially as the attacks drew unwanted attention to the Indian 
Jewish community.  However, Sofer Solomon, Chairman of the Sir 
Jacob Sassoon Charity and Allied Trusts, claimed that many felt 
the attacks on the Chabad representatives at Nariman House were 
intended as attacks on Israel, not the Indian Jewish community. 
(Note:  Two terrorists occupied Nariman House, the headquarters 
of the Brooklyn-base Chabad organization which offers orthodox 
religious services and kosher meals to Jews, especially 
traveling Israelis.  Six people were killed there, including 
three Israeli-Americans.  End note.)  Jonathan Solomon, Chair of 
the Indian Jewish Federation, emphasized the threat on the 
community in India comes from external, not internal, forces. 
His synagogue is located within a Muslim locality and has very 
good relations with his Indian Muslim neighbors. 
 
 
 
¶4.  (SBU) In discussions with Congenoffs, Jewish leaders 
acknowledged that they knew of no security threats to the 
community.  Nevertheless, after the attacks, many Mumbai Jewish 
leaders wrote to their local police stations to request police 
protection for their communities and synagogues.  In some 
instances, police responded quickly to assess security and 
provide some enhanced security measures.  In Sofer Solomon's 
opinion, the 26/11 attacks forced the Indian police to 
acknowledge potential threats against the Jewish community.  In 
other localities, however, according to Jewish leaders, the 
police declined to provide additional security, explaining that 
Jews were not a recognized minority that requires police 
protection.  Some police protection units asked for names and 
copies of identity cards of Jewish community members in order to 
access certain synagogues.  Jewish leaders refused, insisting 
 
MUMBAI 00000443  002.2 OF 003 
 
 
that synagogues remain open and welcoming places of worship.  In 
addition, they feared that given the high levels of corruption 
in the police, that information could easily be disseminated. 
 
 
 
Chabad, Nariman House, and Security 
 
------------------------------------ 
 
 
 
¶5.  (SBU) After the attacks, the Chabad organization in Brooklyn 
sent several rabbinical students back to Mumbai in order to 
maintain a presence in the city after the tragedy, and to 
determine whether, and under what conditions, the center should 
be re-established.  Chabad created a new center in a residential 
apartment building, staffed by rotating temporary personnel 
until a married rabbi can be found to lead the center. 
Information concerning its location and staff is controlled; 
despite this, Chabad estimates that 100 Jewish visitors come to 
the Mumbai Chabad house each week for Chabad's daily kosher 
meals.  Consulate Mumbai's Regional Security Office and the 
Israeli Consulate maintain regular contact with Chabad 
representatives, and consult with them on safety and security 
issues.  Chabad is continuing to evaluate the feasibility of 
re-establishing their Mumbai center, and the future of Nariman 
House, which they would like to eventually re-open. 
 
 
 
Chabad and the Indian Jews 
 
--------------------------- 
 
 
 
¶6.  (SBU) While the Chabad rabbis and the Indian Jewish 
community worshipped together and collaborated on issues of 
community interest, Indian Jews expressed reservations about 
Chabad, and their presence in Mumbai.  Chabad's orthodox 
practices differed from the conservative traditions of the 
Indian Jews; many Indian Jewish leaders told Congenoffs that 
they had never visited Nariman House.  Moreover, members of the 
Indian Jewish community accused Chabad rabbis of attempting to 
establish another synagogue in southern Mumbai, pulling away 
many foreign Jews resident in or traveling through the city. 
This created tension, as the Indian Jewish community struggles 
to maintain membership in its six synagogues, and depends on 
foreign and visiting Jews for Minyan, the requirement to have 10 
Jewish men for a prayer service and other religious practices. 
Chabad rabbis did agree to end this effort, and worship at the 
Keneseth Elyahoo Synagogue which is also managed by Sofer 
Solomon.  After the 26/11 attacks, this synagogue was one of the 
first to get police protection.  According to Solomon, Chabad's 
orthodox attire draws "dangerous attention" to the synagogue and 
the Indian Jewish community.  While he and other members of the 
community do not enjoy keeping a low profile, they acknowledged 
that as a minority "that is how it works in India." 
 
 
 
¶7.  (SBU) The Israeli Consul General, Orna Sagiv, told 
Congenoffs that while her Consulate has made consistent efforts 
to help Chabad with its security, the Israeli government "cannot 
take responsibility for their security."  Chabad's philosophy of 
remaining open and accessible to the Jewish community was one 
reason why Nariman House had taken few security measures.  Now, 
Chabad recognizes the need for greater vigilance, but the 
organization still has a difficult time reconciling its security 
needs with its mission.  The Israeli Consulate has limits on 
what it can do for Chabad - especially since it is an American 
organization, with mostly non-Israeli employees - and has 
encouraged them to consult with the American Consulate and the 
State Department in Washington as well.  The Consul General 
lamented the divisions between the Indian Jewish and Chabad 
communities, and hoped that going forward, she would be able to 
continue to maintain balance between the two groups.  (Note: 
The community had hoped to observe the anniversary of 26/11 
quietly and privately, but, at the Israeli Embassy insistence, 
now plan to hold an ecumenical memorial service at the Keneseth 
Elyahoo Synagogue designed to honor all victims of the attacks. 
End Note.) 
 
MUMBAI 00000443  003.2 OF 003 
 
 
 
 
 
¶8.  (SBU) Comment:  After 26/11, the small, declining Indian 
Jewish community is more alert to potential security threats. 
However, the community is still largely comfortable with its 
position as a deliberately low-key minority in India, and is 
proud of its peaceful relations with their Muslim and Hindu 
neighbors.  The attacks brought the community closer, but also 
brought unwanted attention.  With the return of the Chabad 
organization, there will likely continue to be minor tensions 
among these small communities, and fears that a more aggressive 
identifiably Israeli Jewish presence in the city will 
potentially expose the Indian Jewish community to attacks from 
extremists.   End Comment. 
FOLMSBEE